Vice President JD Vance had people groaning after he made a bad joke about the production of Les Misérables he and his wife, Second Lady Usha Vance, attended at the Kennedy Center with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump.
The musical, set in 19th century France, tells the story of Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who is released from prison for stealing a loaf of bread. The story touches on timeless themes such as justice and mercy—and also happens to be about people resisting an authoritarian takeover, which many find ironic given the Trump administration's response to protests in Los Angeles.
It's one of the most famous stories in the West, and Vance thought the time was right to, as he shared, ask his wife:
"So what's this about? A barber who kills people?"
Apparently his wife burst into "hysterical laughter," which Vance later followed up with:
"That's apparently a different thing called 'Sweeney Todd.'"
(And yes, that is a very rough description of what Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is about.)
You can see his post below.
People were not impressed though... the cringe was real.
In March, Vance was booed loudly by audience members at the Kennedy Center as he took his seat in the mezzanine.
Audience members reported that added security measures delayed the concert by 20 minutes and that despite the poor reception, the Vances stayed for the entire performance of Shostakovich’s "Violin Concerto No. 2" and Stravinsky’s "Petrushka."
The Kennedy Center has been at the center of controversy since Trump overhauled the institution's traditionally bipartisan board and installed himself as chairman. The newly appointed board of loyalists has made clear that they intend to revise the Kennedy Center's performance schedule to Trump's liking; the president previously claimed the Center's programming was "wokey."
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